The Vineyard

Carabella Vineyard is on the southeast slope of Parrett Mountain in the Chehalem Mountains AVA. The vines are planted at an ideal altitude between 500 to 600 feet. Gravelly volcanic soils—Nekia, Saum and Jory, have proven perfect for dry farming the low yielding vines. Winemaker Mike Hallock had all of this in mind when he planted the first 49 acres of Carabella in 1996. He brought his 25 years of experience as a geologist to bear on choosing this site, a process that spanned a dozen years.

The vision for the planting of Carabella was a sort of deconstructed selection massale. The original 1996 planting was committed to Wadensvil, Pommard, Dijon 115, Dijon 114, Dijon 113, each bringing a particular element to the blending palate. After ten years of learning the site’s strengths, Hallock planted the final nine acres to two additional clones of pinot noir, Dijon 667 and 777 (and a bit more 115), in the fall of 2007. The vineyard has lived up to Mike Hallock’s expectations; he now has a broad spectrum of elements from which to create wines of nuanced complexity to honor the singularity of this site.

An early commitment to Dijon 76 Chardonnay has yielded distinctive yet complementary fruit from the warmest and coolest blocks. Two different clonal blocks of pinot gris on the western side provide balanced fruit that yield a complex style of pinot gris.

In addition to the Carabella label, certain rows of fruit are contracted to several other notorious winemakers in the Chehalem Mountains and Dundee Hills AVAs The vineyard is Certified Sustainable, committed to using no herbicides or chemical pesticiides.